Captain's corner

By ED WALKER

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 5, 2000

Growing up on the beach, I spent a good portion of my childhood fishing from piers and bridges. My favorite was Indian Rocks Pier, which was destroyed by Hurricane Elena. But there are still great places for shore-bound anglers to fish. Here is a list of favorites:

Redington Long Pier: It is perhaps the best pier left in Florida to catch tarpon. During the late summer months many anglers gather at the end of the pier to battle the migrating silver kings. Some evenings as many as 30 tarpons are hooked. They can weigh 150 pounds and several of more than 170 pounds have been weighed there. There are few places you can fish and see 30 tarpon hooked in an evening.

Fort De Soto piers (Family Pier, Potter Pier): Best known for amazing runs of Spanish mackerel in the spring and fall. These piers hold massive schools of bait that attract mackerel. It's not uncommon to catch a hundred mackerel when the run is on.

Sunshine Skyway bridge: One of the few places a landlubber can catch keeper-sized grouper. Deep water and lots of leftover bottom structure draw good-sized gags and mangrove snapper. It's also a good place for Spanish mackerel.

Anna Maria Pier: Best known for pompano fishing. Swift moving, clean water is preferred by the pompano, and anglers using jigs often catch their limits. It's also famous for sharks, . including a hammerhead larger that the world record of 991 pounds.

Gandy Bridge: Good for tarpon at night but recognized more as the black drum capital of the bay. Herds of drum up to 50 pounds live around the pilings year-round. Although poor eating, they are fun to catch and release. Summer anglers also do well with pompano using fiddler crabs for bait.

- Ed Walker charters out of Palm Harbor. Call (727) 944-3474.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.

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